Shadowfall
by ZoetheBrave
Summary: Lorelei and Myara discover lost dragon eggs in the Spine. After the eggs hatch, they leave their home to travel to Surda in search of the Varden, but Lorelei is captured along the way. INDEFINITE HIATUS.
1. Awakening

Summary: Lorelei and Myara discover lost dragon eggs in the Spine. After the eggs hatch, they leave their home to travel to Surda in search of the Varden, but Lorelei is captured along the way. When she is thrust into the dungeons of Uru'Baen, she meets Murtagh, and vows to set him free. Miraculously managing to escape, Lorelei reunites with Myara, and they reach the Varden, where they join Eragon and Saphira and become stronger than ever before. But they can only relax for so long before Galbatorix makes the first move in the beginning of the end.

Here we go with my first Eragon story. The journey starts just before the villagers flee Carvahal.

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The snow was thick on the ground of the Spine as Lorelei knelt, sighting along the shaft of her arrow. Her target, a large buck, was stationary, pawing at the frozen ground in hopes of uncovering the dormant grass beneath. As the silent hunter drew back her bowstring with bated breath, a sudden cry split the silence, causing her prey to bound away. The arrow buried itself deep in the wood of a tree nearby.

"Lorelei!"

With a cry of frustration, the girl trudged over to the tree and yanked out her arrow.

"Lorelei, come here! Quick!"

Lorelei stomped through the trees to the spot where her blood-sister Myara stood with her back to her. Shaking the arrow at her, the frustrated girl growled, "What is it now, Mya? You just scared away a nice large buck, and…"

The words fell silent on her lips as Myara turned around. In her arms was a large, beautiful ice-blue stone. It was unlike any stone Lorelei had ever seen before. About a foot long and oval, it was perfectly, unnaturally smooth. One flawless color with darker blue veins spider webbing over the surface.

Lorelei stared from the stone, to Myara's face, and back again.

"Wha…how…What is it?"

Myara shook her head.

"I don't know, but there's another one. Look."

She stepped aside to reveal another stone of deep violet. Lorelei stared at it. Stepping forward, she couldn't help but feel as if something were drawing her to it. She crouched to pick it up and almost dropped it in surprise. It was warm. For the slightest moment, she thought she heard a squeak issue from the stone, but when she pressed her ear against it, she found it to be as silent as any other piece of sediment.

Standing up, she saw that the veins that ran over the stone were the purest silver, and she couldn't help but marvel at the stone's beauty as she ran her fingers over it. She could've spent all day goggling over the stone, but Myara nudged her and said, "we need to get going, Lore. There's a storm coming in."

Further inspection of the sky proved her comment right. Black clouds were approaching fast.

"What do we do with these?" Lorelei asked, staring at the stone in her arms. She was loathe to leave it behind, but it could belong to somebody else, and they might come looking for it.

"Finders keepers," Myara said with a grin, and gently slipped her stone into her pack. Lorelei did the same with a smile of her own, and the two girls soon made it back to their camp. They quickly uncovered the game they had killed and hoisted it over their shoulders; one deer each, with a few wild hares. And so, they began their long trek down the mountain. The farther they went, the warmer it got, and soon, there wasn't even a hint of frost on the ground.

The dark clouds followed their journey, and by the time they made it back to the little cottage they called home, the sun had set, and the stars were quickly being extinguished as the clouds hid them from view. When Myara opened the door, a distant rumble of thunder and a bright flash of lightning followed them in.

Setting their catch down on the table in the back room used as a larder and preparation room, the girls stripped down to just a shirt, tunic, and breeches, now free of the need of winter clothes. Myara tossed her pack to Lorelei, who set them on the table in their kitchen, then rejoined her sister. For the better part of two hours, they skinned, gutted, cleaned, and prepared the meat, and finally stored it away, leaving only a small bit out for their supper. There was little conversation during the task, but the silence was comfortable.

"Can you take care of the packs?" Lorelei called to Myara as she grabbed some vegetables from the larder. Her sister, who had been disposing of the innards after cleaning the hides and pelts, called back, "yep."

Lorelei took the raw food to the kitchen, where she immediately set about making a stew, singing softly to herself as she worked, dicing vegetables, shredding spices, and chopping meat.

"Mya, can you get the fire?" she called over her shoulder as she reached up to get the pot that hung over her head. There was a muffled call of "brisingr," and suddenly, flames sprung to life in the stove.

"Thanks, love," she called, and resumed throwing things into the pot. The use of magic was not at all unfamiliar to her. Myara had introduced her to it when she had found her, two years before. Myara had no recollection of who she had been before Lorelei found her, just her name, and the knowledge of the ancient language, and magic. Myara had taught Lorelei the ancient language, but the girl herself had no aptitude for magic. Though neither of the two had any idea as to who she was, or where she came from, Lorelei had noticed that the tips of Myara's ears were slightly pointed, and her eyes carried a hint of a slant, leading her to believe that she was descendant from elves.

In the room they used for their bedroom, Myara unpacked a few trinkets from the forest, the dirty clothes, and the stones. Setting the violet one on Lorelei's bed, she took the silvery blue one in her arms and gazed at it, lightly running her fingertips over the satin-smooth surface. A soft crooning emanated from the stone, and Myara dropped it in surprise. She waited to hear the loud crack of the broken stone, but only a dull thump followed. Looking down, she saw that the stone was still intact, and had not even a scratch on its beautiful surface.

Myara bent down to pick it up, and tapped her fingernail against it. A quiet, pure ringing followed. It sounded as if the stone was hollow. She lightly shook it, but nothing seemed to move inside of it. Before she could investigate any more, however, Lorelei called from the kitchen, alerting her that the stew was almost done. Sighing, Myara placed the stone gently on her own bed, and headed to the kitchen.

Lorelei was stirring the stew when Myara entered.

"Just a few more minutes," she said absently as Myara collected two bowls and spoons and placed them on the table. She then wandered out to the larder in search of a flagon of cider, but as she passed the bedroom, she heard a thump. Alarmed, she unsheathed the knife hanging from her belt, and cautiously nudged open the door with her foot. Peering around the corner, she saw, not an intruder, but the violet stone on the floor.

"What in the…?'

She strode over to the stone and picked it up. Looking around the room, she saw nothing else that she deemed suspicious, and replaced the stone on the bed. Casting one last look around, she closed the door again, and headed for the larder, shaking her head. As a loud peal of thunder sounded, however, neither of the two girls heard the loud squeaks that came from some hidden being inside of the mysterious stones, or the cracks that followed.

After a warm dinner, the two girls retired to their room, and sat for some time on their beds, holding their stones. Lorelei absently ran her hand over the surface of the stone, and noticed with a start a crack that wasn't there before. It was hair thin, and her fingers couldn't discern any space between the two sides, so she passed it off as another vein, or something of the like. Myara, however, with strangely acute senses, felt the minute crack, and upon trying to prise the stone open, failed miserably.

Sighing in frustration after minutes of endless tugging, she gave up, and set the stone down on the floor beside her bed. Rolling onto her side, she blew out her candle, and grumbled a goodnight to Lorelei.

Lorelei also sighed, and placed her stone next to her bed as well. She returned the goodnight and blew out her candle, casting them into total darkness, save for the occasional flash of lightning outside the window. All too soon, the pounding of the rain lulled her to sleep alongside her sister.

A few hours later, the stones started to stir. An occasional jerk turned into a constant, violent rocking, but the noise of the storm kept either of the two girls from waking up. Suddenly, simultaneous cracks issued, and small pieces of the stone dropped away, allowing small snouts to poke through. The violet one was able to poke a leg out also, and soon, it was free of its capsule. It sat on the floor, licking a bit of membrane off of itself, as the blue one fought to escape. Soon enough, it too was free.

The two creatures looked around and sniffed the air, then made their way over to their respective beds. Hooking small claws into the fabric of the bedding, they clumsily managed to climb up beside their objective.

The creatures sniffed the girls on the beds, and were satisfied that they were the correct beings. Then, by pure happenstance, the two creatures curiously touched their snouts to exposed skin at the exact same time. little did they know, miles upon miles away, another creature was cautiously touched by its conscious master.

Lorelei and Myara were violently roused from their journey through the dreamland by a white-hot, searing pain that burned its way through their bodies. They sat straight upright, sending the creatures they had yet to notice tumbling to the floor with squeaks of surprise. With a groan of pain, Myara clutched at a spot just below her collarbone as Lorelei's hands few to her forehead.

Slowly, the pain ebbed from their bodies and settled as a slight throb in the places where the pain had originated. The sisters looked at each other in shock, and then gasped.

"What is that?" they asked at the same time.

"What?"

Lorelei scrambled up and retrieved the mirror from its place on the shelf. She stared openmouthed at her reflection. Under the fringe of her hair was a silvery mark in the shape of a sideways crescent moon. Her fingers jumped to her forehead and felt the slightly raised mark. It shone brightly through her dark hair and didn't pale or go away when she rubbed at it.

Myara grabbed the mirror from her hand and looked at her own head, where there was an astounding lack of marking.

"It's on your chest," Lorelei whispered.

Frowning, Myara tilted the mirror to see the silver mark just below her collarbone. It was about the same size as Lorelei's but in the shape of a many pointed star.

"What is this?" she breathed in amazement.

Any reply Lorelei might have managed to give was cut short by the outraged squeaks below them. As they looked down in surprise, their jaws hung open. There, on the floor in front of them, were two baby dragons.

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Whew. There's the end. Please review, and let me know if you liked it!

-Piratemuffins


	2. Planning

Alrighty! Many Thanks to x0chu0x, who is the first one to review!!! I got to thinking that this story should be in someone's PoV so there will be more talking and thinking, and so you can see how they get closer to their dragons, so from now on, this will be Lorelei's PoV.

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_Frowning, Myara tilted the mirror to see the silver mark just below her collarbone. It was about the same size as Lorelei's but in the shape of a many pointed star._

"_What is this?" she breathed in amazement._

_Any reply Lorelei might have managed to give was cut short by the outraged squeaks below them. As they looked down in surprise, their jaws hung open. There, on the floor in front of them, were two baby dragons._

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I stared at the dragon in front of my bed, the violet one, in shock, too afraid to breathe, lest I scare it. After what seemed like ages of silence, the dragon suddenly sneezed, sending it rolling backwards to crack its head on the floor. I let out an involuntary giggle and jumped off the bed without thinking to kneel next to the dragon. When I reached out to help it up, I realized what I was doing and froze, but shook it off. I had a gut feeling that this dragon wasn't a threat.

I gently picked up the dragon, noticing Myara slowly kneel next to her dragon as well. The violet creature gazed up at me with its deep violet eyes and I felt a strange presence bump against my mind.

_Myara?_ I thought, thinking it was my sister who had alerted me, but her mind was closed off. That brought my eyes back to the dragon, who was still watching me with wide eyes. Gently, I picked up one of its wings, and with its aid, stretched it out. The wing was soft and warm, like damp parchment, and had small veins running through it. It appeared similar to a bat wing.

The scales on its back were of the deepest violet, growing lighter as they wrapped around to its stomach. They were very hard, and shone brighter and clearer than the purest of gems. Along its neck and back were tiny ivory spikes, going down to the end of its tail. I ran my hand gently over the gorgeous scales and crooned, "Oh, you beautiful thing. I'm sure you're the prettiest dragon ever."

At my praise, the dragon chirped happily and nuzzled my neck. I giggled when it let out another small sneeze, and looked over to Myara, who was also holding her dragon and staring at it in awe.

"Mya," I said softly, causing her to look up at me. "You know what this means, don't you?" she nodded and gazed down at her dragon.

"We're dragon riders."

Suddenly, her dragon nudged her, crying shrilly.

"I think it's hungry," I said, then burst out in giggles at the look on her face. She turned to me with a strange look of amusement and said, "Well, let's get them something to eat."

A few minutes later, we were sitting at our table watching the tiny dragons wolfing down bits of meat. When their bellies were full, they crawled back to us and snuggled in our arms, whistling contentfully. The ice blue one let out a small burp, and Myara and I stared at each other with wide eyes before laughing again.

The dragons slowly closed their eyes, and fell asleep in our arms. I looked over at Myara and whispered, "What are we going to do?"

She tore her gaze away from her dragon and looked back at me. "We're going to take care of them," she started slowly. _Of course,_ I thought, nodding. "Then we're going to the Varden. The reports of the Empire's attempts at taking them down have become more frequent, and I think they need all the help they can get. Now they will have three dragon riders, instead of one."

I drummed my fingers on the table rapidly.

"What about Galbatorix?" I asked. "He will know that the eggs have hatched. He'll send someone after us, and if we're captured, he'll make us work for him."

Myara nodded. "We have to stay hidden. We'll go into the Spine and stay in the abandoned cabin. Most people either wouldn't dare venture into the Spine, or they won't think to look for us there. We can stay up there until the dragons are ready to fly, then we'll head for the Varden. Last I heard, they were in Surda, so we'll travel along the foothills of the Spine as far as we can, which'll probably be about to Leona Lake. Then we'll have to try to get to the Varden without being seen."

I sighed and tilted my head back so I was staring at the beams in the ceiling.

"Life will never be the same," I murmured.

"No," my sister agreed. "It won't be. But you'll always have me, old mum. We'll stick together, and we'll get through this. The Empire doesn't stand a chance against the pair of us."

I tossed her a crooked smile and stood up.

"They might if I don't get a decent night's sleep," I joked, stifling a jaw-splitting yawn. Myara stood up as well, and we headed back to our beds. I laid down and gently placed my sleeping dragon on the pillow next to my head. It gave a weak snuffle and buried its head back under its wind.

I gave it a gentle smile and looked over at Myara, who had similarly placed her dragon on her bed.

"Goodnight Mya," I said, stifling another yawn.

"Goodnight Lore," she replied and blew out the re-lit candles.

I settled down next to my dragon, and before I knew it, I had fallen asleep gazing at the violet scales of its side. All too soon, I woke to sunlight hitting my eyelids. Groaning, I peeled them open, only to see a wall of purple in front of me. Blinking rapidly, I realized that the dragon had moved in the night until it was curled flush against me. Myara, who walked into the room with a steaming mug in her hand couldn't help letting out an "aaw" when she saw us.

Trying not to disturb the still slumbering dragonet, I slowly sat up and gratefully accepted the mug of tea from my sister.

"Drink up," she said, returning to her bed to strip the sheets from it and throw them in a pile on the floor. "We've got a long day ahead of us. We're packing up today for our move into the Spine."

I frowned, but got out of my comfortable bed. "Today?"

Myara shrugged. "Why not? The sooner the better. We can't risk anyone finding out about them." She gestured to our dragons before she continued gathering her belongings from the room.

"Good point," I remarked quietly before setting down my tea to gather my things. As I was pulling clothes out of my chest of drawers, I felt another brush against my conscience.

"Myara?" I asked out loud.

"Hmm?"

"Are you trying to talk to me? You know, inside?" I tapped my temple to explain.

She frowned. "No. Have you been trying to talk to me?"

I shook my head.

"That's strange," she muttered. "I've been feeling someone brush against my mind a few times today, and I thought it was you, but when I called out, no one answered me."

_Lorelei._

I looked at her. "Did you do that?"

She blinked. "Do what?"

"Say my name. Inside."

She shook her head slowly. "No. I haven't said anything."

_Lorelei._

"Stop it!" I cried, exasperated, and whirled around.

Myara raised her hands. "I'm not doing anything!"

I saw movement on my bed and turned to look directly into my dragon's violet eyes.

_Lorelei._

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Alrighty! Please review! I'd love to know what y'all think about everything so far, and I'll try to update as soon as possible!

-Piratemuffins


	3. Leaving

**Here's a little something I threw together. Sorry it took so long, and sorry about the shortness, but if I didn't post something soon, this story probably wouldn't have ever seen the light of day again.**

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_**Lorelei.**_

"_Stop it!" I cried, exasperated, and whirled around._

_Myara raised her hands. "I'm not doing anything!"_

_I saw movement on my bed and turned to look directly into my dragon's violet eyes._

_**Lorelei.**_

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I gaped at the glittering lizard on my bed. Was it truly the little creature that was trying to speak to me? It seemed impossible that an animal was talking to me, but then again, looking at the events of last night, I was willing to go on a little faith.

Tentatively, I reached out with my mind, sending a tendril of thought into the enormous nothingness that I was still afraid to get lost in. The space was so vast, so empty that, even though I was used to communicating with Myara in such a way, I still feared that one day I would be unable to pull myself back. I soon made contact with another mind which immediately let me in. I gasped inaudibly. This mind was large also, larger than any human's, and was full of inexplicable wisdom and knowledge.

_Hello? _I asked softly. _Little dragon, is that you?_

I felt happiness through the connection we shared, and a female voice, one too mature for the hatchling's minuscule body replied, _**yes.**_

I blinked in surprise and was dimly aware of my body moving over to kneel on the floor next to the bed.

_How can you talk? _I wondered. _You are so small; so young. You are…_ I bit my lip.

_**An animal? **_Replied the amused voice.

I nodded, flushing.

_**I am no ordinary animal. I am a dragon. We are magical creatures. Do not be surprised at our abilities. As for my age, the reason my sister and I have hatched; the need of the land calls for us. We are maturing more quickly than any other dragon has ever before, without the aid of an outside force. We are needed, mature and powerful, not small and weak, so we grow. When we are no longer needed so desperately, our growth will slow.**_

I nodded slowly. _What do we need to do?_

The dragonet blinked at me with her bright, trusting, violet eyes. _**You must take us to the Varden. From there, we will travel to the elfin city of Ellesmera to see the queen of the elves. It is there that you will learn the deeper secrets of dragons and riders. **_She fell silent, and I had the feeling that she would say no more, but I decided to ask one final question.

_What is your name?_

The dragonet blinked and said with a smile in her voice, _**I am Kalea.**_

_Kalea, _I repeated. _It is a pretty name._

Kalea hummed her contentment and continued watching me with those deep violet eyes that so matched one of my own. A sudden noise from the open door wrenched my gaze away from Kalea's in surprise. Myara stood, looking down on me, with her baby dragon in her arms, and a small smile tugging at her lips.

"Her name is Galadriel," she said softly, turning slightly so that her dragon was looking into my mismatched eyes.

"It is an honor to meet you Galadriel," I replied, smiling. I picked up my own companion and held her at Galadriel's level. "This is Kalea."

The two dragons touched snouts and began humming happily.

_**We are sisters, **_Kalea said in my mind. _**We have known each other for many years.**_

Myara and I just smiled at them and set them back down so we could continue packing for our journey. As I emptied my dresser, Kalea clumsily climbed up onto the top to sit and watch me as I worked. My smile grew and I stopped every so often to pet her or scratch under her tiny scales, causing her to hum in a way that sounded almost like purring. Soon, our bedroom was empty, and we moved on into the kitchen and larder to pack everything away and fasten it to the backs of our horses, D'artanyan and Larkling.

It was just past midday and the sun, beginning it's descent from its highest point in the sky, shone brightly down on my sister and I as we stood outside our little home, dragons perched on our shoulders. Kalea's thin tail was curled gently around my throat like a strange necklace, and her head was next to mine as she hummed in my ear, causing me to smile once more.

Myara put her hand on my unoccupied shoulder, causing me to look over at her.

"Are you ready to go?" she asked. "If we leave now, we can get there by midday tomorrow."

I nodded my head in agreement after casting one final look at the cabin that had been my home all my life (and Myara's for the past two and a half years). Turning swiftly, I mounted D'artanyan and set him off at a trot, sending not one glance behind me as Myara and I made our way toward the fringe of trees at the base of the spine.


End file.
